Friday, August 26, 2005

If JABBS has a kindred spirit in the world of television, it is Jon Stewart and the rest of the gang at Comedy Central's The Daily Show.

Simply put, Stewart et al have the uncanny ability to make razor-sharp political analysis -- better than just about anything you'll see on a real news show -- entertaining and memorable.

The Aug. 25 edition of the show provides the latest example of why this may the most intelligent and meaningful half hour on television.

The subject was President Bush's talking points on the Iraq War. If you a regular JABBS reader, I'm sure you will agree with Stewart's various points.

STEWART: (Bush) has developed a sophisticated exit strategy ... for getting out of questions about the war. It's a strategy known as repetition, or "repetition." It's one he'd used with great success many times before.

"But Jon," you ask, "how does it work?"

...

The first step is to let people know you're aware of their questions. Then the president can reduce these nuanced concerns into a simplistic misguided concern that he can easily refute.

BUSH MONTAGE: I also know there's a lot of folks here in the United States that are, you know, wondering about troop withdrawals ... I also have heard the voices of those saying: "pull out now" ... Immediate withdrawal from Iraq would be a mistake.

STEWART: See? He knows the concerns that make you look like a pussy. So staying the course in Iraq is the plan. But what about all the violence and chaos we see? Pah! It's not match for a simple eight-letter word. See if you can pick out the one he uses:

BUSH MONTAGE: I am pleased with the progress being made ... we're making progress ... a lot of progress ... I'm please with the progress ... progress ... progress ... Oh I know it's hard for some Americans to see that ...

STEWART: But?

BUSH: ... we are making progress.

STEWART: Yes!

So we're doing the right thing and we're making good progress. So, I guess that means, uh, if I hear you correctly -- we're doing the right thing and we're making good progress -- that soon we'll be able to talk about concrete troop withdrawal?

BUSH MONTAGE: Why would you say to the enemy, you know, here's the timetable ... it makes no sense ... it doesn't make any sense to have a timetable ... an artificial timetable ... there aren't any timetables ... I'm not giving timetables ...

STEWART: One little timetable? No timetables!

Now here's why staying on message with your talking points is difficult: Back when the war began, the talking points for the president centered on weapons of mass destruction. (Laughs) Really drilled that into our heads actually -- it was quite a lot of talk. That doesn't seem to come up so much anymore. But you just know some nasty reporter's always going to ask. So the key for your new war rationale talking point is: delivering them as though the person who asked is retarded:

BUSH MONTAGE: We're defeating them there so we do not have to face them here ... our immediate strategy is to eliminate terrorist threats abroad ... we're fighting the enemy in Iraq ... fighting them in Iraq ... to defeat the terrorists abroad ... so we don't have to face them here at home ... where we live ...

STEWART: (Sarcastically) Duh!

Of course, sometimes, no matter how good your talking points, no matter how many times you repeat them, there are still some dissenters and non-believers. If there only was some way you could shut these remaining people up with some kind of emotional bludgeon:

BUSH MONTAGE: The war arrived on our shores on September the 11th, 2001 ... September the 11th ... September the 11th I made a commitment to the American people ... from September the 11th ... the lesson of September the 11th, 2001 ...

STEWART: You know, if I had a nickel for every time Bush has mentioned 9/11, I could raise enough reward money to go after Bin Laden!

Using humor to deliver unpalatable truths is Jon Stewart's genius. He knows that humor relaxes us and we let down our guard, thereby allowing truth to slip in. I bless him and I wish him all the best. He speaks for me.

John's response to Hitchins was shallow and misguided. He basically accepted Hitchens' ridiculous argument that if you aren't bombing terrorists you're trying to love them to death. This completely ignores our complex inter-relationship with many of them; our support, for instance, of Saddam and Osama. John also explicitly dismissed the notion that the war is breeding terrorists; and that our government's policies share some responsibility for their existence. Why can't these fools, John included, understand that it's not an either/or. Criticism is not "blaming America"; it's acknowledging reality, that it's a shared fault, and bombs alone will not resolve the matter.

John kinda has to go easy on the right or else they're never going to be his guests. Frankly I'm surprised that the Reps keep going on his show seeing as Stewart keeps making them look ridiculous. I haven't watched the segement yet, but I actually think that John's polite questioning is quite effective he makes the absolutism of some of his guests seem absolutely insane.

I was also disappointed by John's softballing Hitchens. He made many great remarks but again let Hitchens get away with nonsense and plug his book. This shows our great frustration with the main stream media, that we pin our hopes on a comedy show host to bring out the truth...

I sometimes wish John wouldn't play so nice with the other kids but he has to maintain that innocence that makes it all so funny. Otherwise we'd be crying for the reality of it all.The show should be an hour and on regular channel tho.